1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to ink-jet recording apparatuses, and in particular, relates to ink-jet recording apparatuses including ink-jet recording heads and cap members for protecting the heads installed in main bodies of the apparatuses.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ink-jet recording apparatuses are well known as image forming apparatuses, and used for printers and copiers due to, for example, low noise, low running costs, ease of apparatus size reduction, and ease of colorization.
In order to meet the demand for readily printing photo image data at home along with the recent popularization of digital cameras, photo printers capable of direct printing from memories or direct printing from digital cameras without using personal computers have been proposed.
Such printers are shipped as products including ink-jet recording heads preinstalled in main bodies of recording apparatuses at manufacturing factories so that the operability for a wide range of users is improved. That is, due to the so-called “preset shipping” form, it is not necessary for users to install ink-jet recording heads, which are precision components, upon receiving the printers.
In general preset shipping, ejecting surfaces of ink-jet recording heads are covered with cap members provided for main bodies of recording apparatuses such that the recording heads are protected from dust or drying.
The cap members serve as a part of a suction recovery unit for preventing reductions in quality of recorded images caused by discharge failure of the ink-jet recording heads that make a recording by discharging ink from minute nozzles thereof. In general, the cap members are composed of soft materials such as rubber and elastomer so that the hermetic state of ejecting ports of the recording heads is maintained, and in particular, often composed of materials with a high gas-barrier property such as chlorinated butyl rubber.
When such cap members with high adhesive and hermetic properties are used, the caps are sometimes firmly bonded to the ejecting surfaces of the recording heads depending on their bondability with the ejecting surfaces of the recording heads or depending on the conditions of storage environment in the distribution process after the recording apparatuses are shipped from manufacturing factories. This causes difficulty in separation of the cap members from the recording heads and operation failure of the apparatuses when the apparatuses are turned on by users.
In order to avoid operation failure of apparatuses caused by the bonding of cap members to recording heads, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 2002-347234 and 2004-90293 describe structures in which carriages having recording heads installed therein are reciprocated by a small amount before cap members are separated.
However, when the cap members bonded to the recording heads are separated from the ejecting surfaces of the recording heads in a direction perpendicular to the ejecting surfaces, it is necessary to apply a uniform force to the entire contact surfaces of the cap members. Thus, a large peeling force is required, preventing the separation of the cap members from the recording heads.
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 2002-347234 and 2004-90293, the cap members are separated from the recording heads by moving the carriages, that is, using the so-called cap sliding mechanism. In this mechanism, the cap members are separated from the recording heads while moving relative to the carriages, and this corresponds to the separation of the cap members from the ejecting surfaces of the recording heads in the direction perpendicular to the ejecting surfaces. As a result, peeling force is not significantly reduced.
In order to separate cap members firmly bonded to recording heads from the recording heads, a large driving force and an increased strength of associated parts are required. This leads to increases in cost and size of apparatuses.